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For all its discuss of tolerance, the Congress in Assam has taken the facet of Bengali audio system
Amar Sonar Bangla, that means My Golden Bengal, was written by Rabindranath Tagore in 1905 as a protest in opposition to the primary partition of Bengal. (File picture/News18 Hindi)
Assam’s politics is steeped in a febrile mixture of identification, migration, and linguistic assertion. For a bit of Assamese, the hymn appears like a breach of sensitivity. The hymn was written by Tagore to instill a way of oneness amongst Bengalis who have been being pulled in several instructions through the first partition of Bengal in 1905.
So, whereas for Bengalis the hymn evokes a way of shared tradition in a “higher” Bengal, in Assamese-speaking individuals, already a linguistic minority, its rendition exacerbates their ongoing cultural and demographic marginalisation in Assam. Unfortunately, the upcoming inhabitants census findings will, in truth, solely underline this sense of diminution additional. Is it a surprise then that the response amongst Assamese is one in every of anger with the Congress for a presumed betrayal?
The Assam CM, as an example, has labelled the Congress’s determination to defend and justify the rendition of Amar Sonar Bangla in a pocket of the Bengali-dominated Barak Valley as an act of performative chauvinism. An act that he and different Assamese audio system insist ought to be prosecuted in regulation as an egregious breach of sovereignty. While that’s debatable, for the Congress, as identified, at a time when identification is hotly contested, putting such a jarring political be aware suggests the social gathering is tone-deaf to the sentiment of Assamese audio system in Assam.
For all its discuss of tolerance, the Congress in Assam has taken the facet of Bengali audio system. That it has picked a crew is ironic to say the least. Remember, the Congress has not carried out so in different states the place it shares energy. For instance, it has not stood up for the rights of Hindi-speaking north Indians in Tamil Nadu. There, its southern ally, the DMK, targets Hindi at each obtainable alternative. Complaints about “Hindi cultural imposition” routinely lease the air—there’s no discuss of “shared” something then.
What’s an excellent higher contradiction is that apologists for the Congress’s silence over the rejection of Hindi by its allies in states like Tamil Nadu usually remind Hindi audio system that celebrating cultural pleasure calls for political prudence. This is very true of areas that also measure belonging in emotional phrases, as fairly clearly a bit of Assamese audio system in Assam does. But is anybody within the Congress ecosystem that’s championing the rendition of “Amar Sonar Bangla” by Bengali audio system in Assam deferring to the feelings of Assamese audio system within the spirit of lodging? No. Instead, these Assamese audio system who’re upset are being labelled Sanghis. What selectivity! What hypocrisy!
Rahul Shivshankar is Consulting Editor at Network18. He tweets at @RShivshankar
Rahul Shivshankar is Consulting Editor at Network18. He tweets at @RShivshankar
October 30, 2025, 18:01 IST
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